


the making of a supervillain

by orphan_account



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Comedy, F/F, Fluff, Supervillain AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-30
Updated: 2018-11-30
Packaged: 2019-09-02 14:55:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,509
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16789186
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Tired of living in Kara's shadow since the day she arrived in Midvale, Alex Danvers becomes a supervillain.What choice does Kara have? She becomes a superhero.Except... Alex might just be the worst supervillain—in Earth's history and every civilization's that Kara can recall—because Alex probably saves and helps more people than Kara does in any given week.





	the making of a supervillain

Alex's hand trembles on the lever. She takes a deep breath to steady herself. Now is not the time for a weakened resolve: she's a supervillain, for god's sake!

She can and will release this swarm of nanotech into the city's water system.

And then it's done—a pull of her arm, and there's no going back.

Immediately after Alex releases the lever, a red and blue blur whooshes past.

Alex turns slowly, already knowing who she would see. "Hello, Supergirl," she says, affecting a bored tone. "What brings you here today?"

Kara rolls her eyes at her foster sister. "You left your phone's location on, and 'find my friends' told me you were in the area."

Alex lifts her chin just the slightest, defiant.

She looks good, Kara thinks. Alex is dressed in all black, her hair slightly curled and fluffed. Kara wishes Alex would agree to movie nights more often, where she can cuddle up and play with Alex's hair.

Shaking such wistful thoughts out of her head, Kara says, "Sooo. Whatcha up to?"

When Alex doesn't seem inclined to respond, Kara wheedles some more. "Alex," she says, putting an edge of disapproval into her voice. "If you don't tell me, I'll have to fly a scientist from a nearby university over, and you _know_ how long it takes them to understand your work. We'll be here forever." Kara accentuates her point with her trademark Kara Danvers puppy dog look.

As predicted, Alex relents at this. She clears her throat. "I've released nanobots into the city's water." Glancing at her watch, she continues, "It's too late to stop it now—the swarm has multiplied and reached critical mass for full dispersal."

"And what do they do?" Kara asks, sighing internally. Alex is always _so_ dramatic when they're working.

"Well, uh—well, they're cleaning the water. Filtering it, basically, removing heavy metals and chemical contaminants. We're nearing levels that endanger public health!" Alex says, unable to keep the passion out of her last point.

"And, um, there have been too many pipes bursting. They've caused disruptions and even injuries! So the bots are restoring the old pipe materials while they're at it," Alex admits.

She hastily adds, "I don't have any of the necessary approvals to do this!"

Finally, Kara thinks, the explanation. She fights back a smile. "Then I'm afraid I'll have to take you to the police station, Alex. We'll see if they want to press charges."

Kara flies over with Alex in her arms—"For the thousandth time, do not carry me bridal style!"—and exchanges a few jokes with the commissioner while updating her on the situation.

As usual, they do not want to press charges.

After all, Supergirl gets into ridiculous situations all the time while superheroing. Despite Alex's slightly different... branding, the city has come to treat her the same way.

The commissioner just shakes Alex's hand, and says she will tell the mayor about Alex's latest services to the city.

On their way out, Alex looks even grumpier than usual. Kara tries not to find it so cute.

***

It had all started when Alex went off to college early. She had gotten past her phases of indifference and annoyance toward Kara, and they had started getting closer—even fond of each other.

But no matter what Alex did, Eliza and Jeremiah were always distracted. Their work came first, and then, when she arrived in Midvale, Kara.

Kara knew it was unfair. Eliza and Jermiah were so preoccupied with her. How she felt after losing her entire planet, and how she was adjusting to her new home, and controlling her new abilities, and the advanced knowledge from Krypton's science—between all of that, which Alex's parents tried to nurture and study, Alex never got the attention she deserved.

So when Alex got into Stanford and excelled in her pre-med and engineering courses, and still her parents barely noticed, she started pulling away from Kara. She heard from Alex less and less, and each time some of Alex's affection for Kara seemed to fade. By the time Alex started her graduate program, she had decided: she would show them all. She would become a supervillain.

Thousands of miles away, now at NCU, Kara made a parallel decision: she would always be there to catch Alex. She would become a superhero.

***

"Alex!" Kara's voice is aghast as she takes in the wreckage. "What have you done?"

Alex looks up from where she's sitting, surrounded by smoldering rubble. It looks like an entire building was destroyed.

"Supergirl," Alex nods in greeting. "I was just testing the new suit."

Kara watches as Alex rolls her shoulders, indeed wearing a supersuit. It's not the first time Alex has made one, but this one is the best yet. All black, of course, with armored panels, yet sleek and tight on her body. Kara tries to not let her eyes linger on how good Alex looks.

"Did the suit do all this?" Kara asks dubiously, gesturing at the damage.

"Oh! No, that was the rogue alien I apprehended earlier. Heard some cries for help, but I saw you dealing with a train collision on the news. Perfect time to try out the suit," Alex replies.

Kara just stares at Alex, trying to wrap her head around this. Alex, who constantly berates Kara for being reckless—despite being a "supervillain" who shouldn't care about the hero—went into a dangerous situation, without backup, and testing new, unproven tech?!

Kara doesn't often think this thought, but she feels now that she needs a drink.

***

As it had turned out, Kara becoming a superhero was completely unwarranted—as far as, like, redeeming Alex went. Because Alex was a _bad_ supervillain.

Kara may have once thought Alex was good at everything, and she still loved her fiercely, but she had also grown up and realized this was laughably false. Anything requiring athletic ability or scientific skill? Alex was scarily good at all that.

But, anything requiring an ounce of interpersonal awareness or emotional processing? If Alex was involved, that could only end in utter disaster.

So it was, in hindsight, no surprise to Kara that Alex did not know why she wanted to be a "supervillain" or how to be one.

Two years after resolving to be a supervillain, Alex made CatCo's year end issue as "Person of the Year" for her contributions to science and her positive social impact. While the magazine sometimes pointed out her unconventional methods, it was only to praise her undeniable effectiveness.

By the end of her third year, Alex gained international celebrity status for her interventions in climate change.

Now four years later, Alex has inspired so many scientists to go rogue that she decided to retreat back to her lab to work on her favorite pet projects.

So, yeah. Kara thinks it's justified to call her the absolute worst supervillain in Earth's and all histories. Ever.

***

The last straw—the actual point of no return—happens when Kara turns up, unannounced, in the hopes of getting a rare movie night with Alex.

Kara flies through the window of the building where Alex bought out the top floor for her lab. ("Just because I wear all black doesn't mean I don't like sunlight and a view, Supergirl.") She giggles to herself as this trips Alex's alarms, and Alex whirls around in surprise, brandishing a ruler.

"What were you going to do?" Kara teases. "Measure me to death?"

Alex just grumbles something and sets the ruler back down next to the microscope on her table. "At least tell me you have something good in those bags."

Ah, so she's in a good mood today. Sometimes it takes an hour to break down Alex's defenses and get her to even acknowledge eating with Kara. "The classic—pizza and potstickers!" Kara cheers, holding up the bags in her hands.

Alex sighs, "Alright, let me just finish up here, and we'll go to your place."

Kara can't help it—she has her foot in the door, and she won't stop until she's pried it wide open. "Can you give me the tour? You haven't ever given me the sneak preview of what you're working on."

Before Alex can reply, Kara is off, poking around. The floor plan is open and airy, with the fading afternoon light streaming through the windows. Alex has computers and lab equipment all over the tables in the middle, with various cases, stands, and displays around the edges of the floor.

Spotting another supersuit, Kara makes a beeline for that end of the room.

"No, wait—don't—!" Alex calls in vain, because Kara is already there. She takes in this area of the lab—various lamps of brilliant reds and yellows, a faintly green glowing suit, and is that lead in those fabrics?

Kara turns around to look at Alex, standing behind her with her hands in her back pockets and shifting her weight uncomfortably.

"Alex... is this research Kryptonian related?" Kara asks, her confusion seeping into her voice.

Alex rubs her face and won't look Kara in the eye, still staring at the wall around waist-height. "Um, yeah. Some combat stuff—like, a suit that should counteract Kryptonite. Yellow lamps to concentrate the effect of Earth's sun, if you get hurt."

Alex's love for her research comes through as she continues, "But what's even cooler is the non-combat tech. Like, red sun mimicking lamps to dampen your powers without the damaging effects of Kryptonite exposure. And lead in clothing and accessories—it could help with some of your super-senses. Oh, I've even—"

Kara had started striding forward as Alex spoke, and now cuts her off, wrapping her in the tightest hug she dares to give a human.

After a moment where she's frozen in Kara's arms, Alex tentatively raises her hands and gives Kara a few awkward pats before she lets her arms rest on Kara's back.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you," Kara whispers into Alex's hair, where she rests the side of her face, her eyes squeezed shut to savor the moment.

"You're welcome? I mean, it still needs a lot of work, I'm still tweaking—"

"No, that's not what I meant. It's not even the finished product, Alex," she says, trying not to tear up. "It's that you would do this. For me."

There's a long silence. Alex shifts, but doesn't move to leave the hug, so Kara stays where she is. "Kara. I care about you," Alex says slowly and carefully. "You know that, right?"

"Well... I always hoped. But the whole supervillain thing? And barely tolerating my company?"

Alex sighs, and leans further into Kara's warm, steel embrace. "Kara, no. You're my best friend. And you're my favorite person. Even if you aren't family."

Kara feels the warmth that was spreading suddenly chill at Alex's last declaration She steps back, abruptly ending their hug, as she stings with hurt.

"Oh, crap." Alex's face is a little panicked and apologetic. "Look, I didn't mean that the way it sounds."

"How else could it sound, Alex? That's what I thought—I'm just the intrusion in your life."

"God, no. You're not family family, like we're not related, at most we were friends for a bit before I left—" Alex stops her rambling to take a deep breath, and says, slower again, "You're not family, Kara. But you've _become_ my family in the last few years."

Oh. Kara feels a bit of hope form in her. And... what the hell. Pry the door open, right?

Kara watches Alex's face carefully as she says, "Is this a bad time to tell you that I have a crush on you?"

Alex's face goes completely blank. It would be hilarious, except that Kara desperately needs some insight on her reaction.

"That's..." Alex isn't speaking deliberately now, just uncertainly. "There could never be a good time to say that between us, I think, but that is not an unwelcome revelation."

Kara blinks. "Uh—can you say that again? Like, as if you're a person who has feelings?" She throws in a grin to show Alex she's not upset.

"Right, yeah, that was," Alex says, rubbing a hand at the back of her neck. "That was bad. Let me try again," she says, looking at Kara this time.

"I like you too," Alex says in a rush, as if the words are being released and flooding out.

Kara stands there, half dumbfounded, half riding this wave of success. Before she knows it, she's blurting out, "Well lucky for us, I brought food and your apartment has movies, so how about a date?"

To Kara's delight, Alex goes red and squeaks out a "Yeah," before clearing her throat and adding, "Yes, good, let's do that," nodding vigorously.

So Kara flies them out the window, holding onto her three favorite things: pizza, potstickers, and Alex.

("I have to carry you bridal style, Alex! How else am I supposed to hold onto the food too?")

***

Three days and four more dates later—what? Alex needs sustenance, and she'll eat much tastier food if Kara brings takeout over—Kara feels like she has her Alex back.

They're watching a movie they've both seen dozens of times, enjoying the familiarity mixed with their new relationship. At one of Kara's 152 favorite moments of the movie, Alex sits bolt upright on the couch next to her. Alex's eyes are wide with shock, and she whips her head around toward Kara.

"What's wrong, babe?" Kara asks, reaching out to run a soothing hand over Alex's arm.

"The supervillain thing. I did that to see if Mom and Dad would finally react. But they didn't, no surprise there," Alex says with a grimace. "And then... I followed through. And I told myself it was because I 'might as well'? Except... that wasn't exactly true." Alex's face is distant.

"So the truth was...?" Kara asks, gently nudging Alex back to her point.

"Well, ah," Alex laughs weakly, picking at her jeans with her hand not occupied by Kara's. "I always knew you'd become a hero," she says, giving Kara a fond smile. She looks away again. "And I just... had this idea—god it sounds so stupid now—that if I were your opposite, I'd be my own person." Alex sighs. "And, you know, just a bonus, we'd have a kind of, sort of relationship."

Alex is blushing again, and so far that might be Kara's favorite sight in the world—Alex letting her guard down out, rather than hiding them her emotions so deep even Alex doesn't feel them.

"Yeah, that was a very kindergarten crush type of logic you had going on there," Kara grins at Alex. "Lucky for you, I can be old and wise for the both of us."

When Alex opens her mouth in indignation, Kara pulls her closer for a kiss. Alex never tries to circle back to whatever her retort was going to be, so in Kara's book, they both win.


End file.
